Beer: Reviews & Ratings

Poured from a bottle into a Goose Island tulip. Typical-looking IPA: light apricot colored, clear with just a touch of haze, and about a half finger of fine white foam. The nose is quite nice. I get hints of ripe peaches, grapefruit, oranges, and mangoes.

Medium body with a nice hoppy flavor and a surprisingly creamy feel for a sub-9% abv IPA. There's a good balance of fruity hoppy notes and sweet, toasty malt. Lots of fresh grapefruit, lemon, toast with marmalade, and cedary, spicy notes. Very appetizing. Not too abrasive on the palate, but definitely a IIPA seasoned with American hops. The label boasts "dry-hopped IIPA with a powerful aroma of citrus and pine, balanced by a malty backbone.'' Not sure I would describe the aroma as "powerful", but the rest of the description is spot-on.

I was traveling and took a chance on this beer for three reasons: (1) I liked the description, (2) it was marked down to $7 per six-pack, and (3) according to the bottled-on date it was barely two weeks old. I'm very glad I did as I really enjoyed it and would buy it again. (1,074 characters)

A (3): dark copper color; thick bubbly head that disappears quickly; not a whole lot of carbonationS (3.5): inviting toasted malt aroma; not much hopsT (2.75): strong med-roast malt backbone, but there's a strong metal component that detracts from the flavor; hops are mostly in the bittering side, and subdued; boozy; flavor rather simple, straightforward

Nice copper color. Good maltiness - perhaps a bit too heavy on the malt for a DIPA. There is definite hoppiness but along with that hoppiness comes a heaviness. This lacks the bright citrus flavors that I like in a DIPA. The touch of alcohol was also troubling particularly because this offering clocks in on the low-end of the ABV scale for a DIPA. (352 characters)

On tap at brewery.Pours a light copper to orange, clear with foamy head that lingers, providing a good amount if lacing. The smell is mostly of fruit, melon, maybe mango, some sweet orange in the back. There is also an impression of wood and hay, along with a certain amount if sweetness.

The taste is definitely malt forward, but not overpoweringly. The flavors are reminiscent if the smells, but also a damp cardboard taste as well. That taste I think could be the hops (pine/wood) combining with the malt in not the most ideal way. As the beer warms, as usual, this mellows slightly, and the orange tastes come through more.

I'd always enjoyed this beer in the past, but I think my palate has moved on. There beer is still fine, but there are better options out there fairly readily available. (804 characters)

S: Malt with some grapefruit aroma. I'm really note getting a whole lot on the smell of this one, what I do get is grapefruit, and maybe a little light citrus juice.

T: Nicely balanced, although the scales tip to a little malt forward. Toffee and brown bread, as well as grapefruit and orange peel.

M: Medium bodied with fairly high carbonation. I think the carbonation makes this feel a little lighter than it is, you can definitely feel the body going towards syrupy, but the carbonation keeps it from getting there.

O: Overall pretty good, but the aroma is a little weak. Still, tastes good, and is interesting enough to get again. (687 characters)

Pours a clear dark copper body with a finger-tall off-white head with good retention. Aromas of carnival candy corn with a whiff of citrus fruit stand and piney pile of firewood. Flavors are more restrained some of the steroided versions of this style, but are very very good. The citrus and evergreen resin are apparent from beginning to end, but the super malty caramel middle gives this beer an excellent balance. I wish I'd bought a bought a six-pack. (455 characters)

Standard DIPA appearance, with an orange-amber colored clear body, one finger thick head, and lots of streamers. Why mess with success, right? The smell was a little subdued, as the hops didn't hit me in the face. I could detect some grapefruit, and mandarin orange smells, as well as a bit of fresh cut hay. The taste was also not very hoppy to me. There was a herbal bitterness, and a touch of spice, but mid palette and finish was dominated by honey like malt. The sweetness overpowered the hops, but it was not a dark fruit like sweetness approaching barleywine character, but rather a sugary, syrupy taste, making this an odd DIPA. It did feel good and soft in the mouth, and the finish was clean. It was a different take on the style for sure. The closest similar beer I can think of is the Green Flash Green Bullet. (822 characters)

A: Pours a beautiful copper color. The head is a two finger, barely off-white shade. The latter has all the aesthetic ticks I like: creamy texture, decent (not wonderful) retention, and impressive rings of lacing left on the glass. This is a damn good looking DIPA - maybe head retention could be better to get an even higher score, but that's nitpicking.

S: Its hop profile is primarily herbal/piny, with vague hints of grapefruit and melon. Malts are existent yet tucked away, as they should be. I've encountered some mindblowing DIPA aromas in the past - this isn't one of those instances. It's not a particularly intense smell. Nonetheless, it's pleasantly hoppy in all the right places.

T: Bitter right from the onset, and unfortunately lacking nuanced hop flavors - it's just bitterness for the sake of bitterness. That's never a good thing. Ergo, its the malt backbone providing most of the flavor profile, bringing lots of toffee, undefined caramel, and something suggesting earth. Some wisps of floral hop notes try their hardest to come through...and at times, they do. Still, I'm not a fan of these kind of DIPAs.

M: At least it has that crisp bite I enjoy from a good IPA/DIPA. This gives it great drinkability for the first 6 oz. While it grows a bit stickier afterwards, it never really becomes undrinkable, even with the less-than-appealing flavor profile. Carbonation isn't that strong.

O: Did I ever mention how I dislike hoppy beers that are all bitterness, no flavor? Having said that, it's not entirely past redemption - it's pretty easy to drink due to its crispness. Beers like this are proving that DIPAs can be *very* hit-or-miss with my taste buds (look at my reviews for Enjoy By, DirtWolf, and Double Jack for proof). Caveat emptor, my friends: look elsewhere unless you enjoy sweet-yet-bitter DIPAs. (1,867 characters)

Medium-high bitterness all of orange rinds. Orange marmalade sparingly sweetened. A little biscuit in the back.

Exactly medium bodied with waves of carbonation. Lots of bubbles.

A far better Double IPA than I was expecting that has been obviously stored well. Virginia has some overlooked breweries. The high carbonation is the only part of this beer I'm not really crazy about. (573 characters)

Appearance – Pours a slightly hazed reddish-orange-amber color with a small white head. The head fades rather fast leaving patches of foam on the surface and a super light lace on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma is big and bready with a good dose of tangerine and caramel. Along with these more malty aromas are some rather big hoppy aromas of a grapefruit citrus hop and some resinous pine smells. A rather strong alcohol smell is there as well giving it a rather malty and citrusy warming smell overall.

Taste – The taste begins with a dry cracker and biscuit flavor mixed with some tangerine and a rather strong grapefruit hop taste. As the taste moves on, the taste dries out a bit as some tangerine fades away. While this occurs, some pine and a bit of grassy hop comes to the tongue. These flavors add quite a bit of resinous bitterness to the flavor profile, which take the taste to its end where a resinous hopped and semi-sweet malt flavor of a cracker and biscuit nature is left to linger on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is on the average to slightly thicker and chewier side with a carbonation level that is on the average side. The thicker body is rather nice for the hopped and resinous flavors of the brew and made it a slow sipper

Overall –A little unbalanced, starting sweeter and drying out with a decent grapefruit and resinous hop coming to the tongue. While slightly unbalanced it is good and hoppy, so if you are looking for something of the like, then give it a go. (1,566 characters)

A: Pours a clear medium amber in color with minimal amounts of visible carbonation and just a trace of golden yellow highlights. The beer has a quarter finger tall foamy off-white head that reduces to a medium sized patch of mottled thin film and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Light amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Moderate aromas of caramel malts with a touch of sweetness and light aromas of citrus/grapefruit hops.

T: Upfront there is a moderate flavor of caramel malts with a light to moderate amount of sweetness. Light flavors of citrus/grapefruit pith and spicy hops are present lending a light amount of bitterness which lingers for a short amount of time.

M: Medium bodied with a moderate amount of carbonation.

O: For DIPA, this is not really a great example but I guess I am not that surprised as I have yet to have been really impressed with anything from this brewery. The hop flavors and aromas are much too subtle for the style and the alcohol is not nearly well enough hidden. (1,055 characters)

A: The beer is crystal clear amber in color and has no visible carbonation. It poured with a quarter finger high white head that died down, leaving a patch of bubbles in the center of the glass and a collar around the edge of the glass. S: The aroma is a little sweet and has hints of caramel malts along with slight hints of citrusy hops. T: The taste has flavors of caramel malts along with notes of spicy hops and a light amount of bitterness. Notes of alcohol are perceptible. M: It feels medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation. No crispness is detectable. O: For a Double IPA, this beer is really lacking when it comes to providing aromas and flavors of hops. It's not that drinkable considering that some alcohol is noticeable. (801 characters)

Ow dear 10/14/12 is the bottle date making this brew over 10 months old.A - Wow no sediment and a 1/4 inch of off white head that sticks around forever! Amazing for such an old brew. Color is a dirty hazy amber brown.S - Malted sweetness and very little herbal hop bite. This one may be too old for its own good.T - Somewhat bitter and earthy hops with an acidic bite. Mostly sugar malts and some ethanol is noticeable. M - Medium bodied, somewhat chewy, very acidic this stuff burns.

Overall a very herbal and aggressive DIPA that has aged like floor cleaner. Not the best DIPA by a long shot. (599 characters)

Pours almost clear, just slightly hazy. Orange to light amber in color with an off white head of 1 1/2 fingers. No lacing

Smell of over ripe citrus, almost doughy at times. Light piney hops.

Sweet over ripe citrus in the taste as well with faint caramel and a substantial long lasting bitterness. Grapefruit and grapefruit peel.

Medium full in body, Sting of carbonation on the tongue., but creamy in feel otherwise. Burn of alcohol in the throat.

This is a very good beer. Tasty and well bodied. Quite pleasant for a midsummer sampling, but I imagine it would serve as well in the dead of winter. In my opinion, it is among the ranks of the better Virginia brews. (669 characters)

This was a bottle from a sixer I picked up at the Outlet Liquores in Rhoboth, DE.

Look: Poured 2 fingers of rocky off-white foam - quickly reduced to a thin film . Color was a very clear copper with barley any carbonation bubbles detected.

Smell: High level of citrus and sweet tropical fruits. A nice astringency contributed to the very complex hop aroma along with a faint sweet malt in the background.

Taste: First on the palate was a mix of a strong pine and grapefruit. A quick bitterness hit right in the middle. Then a real nice pineapple set in to make up a pleasant finish. The mouth feel was smooth and not too heavy – given the high ABV and complexity. Lacing was good with large patches clinging to the sides of the glass.

This is a good double IPA from. It’s nicely balanced but still has a sophisticated complexity that makes the beer interesting. (969 characters)

A: Pours a very crisp copper color with a 2 1/2 finger off-white head that eventually dwindles down to a slightly bubbly, slightly creamy cap. Leaves a significant amount of sticky lace down the glass. Small, concentrated groups of carbonation bubbles rise from the center, maintaining that small cap. Small sediment floaters give the crisp copper color a hazy, cloudy appearance. I was hoping for a bit more head retention, but overall a solid appearance.

S: A prominent citrusy grapefruit aroma, with underlying notes of hops and pine. A good bit of malty sweetness and alcohol underneath it all. Not a very complex nose, but this one is pleasing through simplicity.

T: This one was a bit too cold upon pouring, so my first sip was primarily just malt sweetness and booze with very mild zings of bitterness. As the beer warms up to about 45 - 50 degrees, the flavors start to balance out. The hop bitterness becomes more profound, melding with the grapefruity citrus and well-rounded malt sweetness. A little bit of boozy twang comes through in the middle and finish, and it warms the throat a bit on the way down. I'm also detecting a little bit of earthy yeast in the aftertaste. This one is overall well-balanced and pleasing on the palette.

M: This one has a medium body with mild, crisp carbonation. This one has a touch of creaminess that makes it slick and smooth on the tongue. Drinks really easily for a brew of its size.

O: This one was surprisingly solid. A very pleasant aroma with some above-average flavors and a smooth body make this one very drinkable for its size. Not something I'd go out of my way to recommend to someone, but a definite solid option and something that I might go back to for a second round in the future. (1,786 characters)

I picked this up at wegman's enjoyed chilled from a teku out of the 12oz brown bottle.

The color is deep amber with hazed clarity and two fingers of flat beige from a vigorous pour with avg bead and wavy lace. The smell has a fruity indistinct hop smell maybe some apricot or floral but generally pretty uneventful. There is some alcohol in the aroma and sweet malt ester. The feel is slightly sweet with moderate carbonation up front followed by a bitter andstrong finish.

The taste is not as good as the smell lets on it starts kind of caramel influenced with a dusty dry nutty malt flavor with more of a piney hop mid palate and some slight grapefruit and grass into the finish with a lot of alcohol for the strength. The bitterness lasts w/ a sharp quality that is not pleasant, but I keep sipping on it so it must not be terrible either. Overall I don't think I would try this on tap considering the fact this bottle was a little underwhelming. The hop flavor is lacking even though it is bitter enough and has the aroma of an Imperial IPA it is just average. (1,070 characters)

A: High turbidity factor, with macro particulate matter suspended about a glowing orange body. Chunky macro particles are bready while the head is thin, compact with a antique white tint with dull yellowish undertones. Lacing is sparse, low coverage rate, weakly holding.

S: Grassy-hay aroma, sweet toast and grahm crackers. Strength is average with a bit of dried apple slices.

T: Toasted dry sweetness for flavor followed by a dry hopping of grassy-onion hops. Good level of dry bitterness, citrus and dry herbal appeal that spikes with a sharp toasted grain and grassy-onion finale. Some dry lemon.

M: Mouthful is rough, edgy, silty feel with the malt with a scratchy residual and leafy flowery coating ont the tongue. Leaves with a dry bitterness.

O: Overall worthy ibus, though as with most ipas everything is dry and linear, focusing on the brunt dry hop bitterness rather flavor. Love the extra junk in the glass, worthy a visit for a good wallop of hops. (970 characters)